Today, the Carbon Trust hosted the first UK demonstration of a new vessel designed to reach offshore wind farms more cheaply and easily.
The Wave Craft, developed by Norwegian shipbuilder Umoe Mandal with support from the Carbon Trust’s Offshore Wind Accelerator (OWA), was put through its paces at Seawork International 2015 in Southampton.
Umoe Mandal’s Wave Craft was a finalist in the OWA’s international competition to find the most innovative solutions for accessing far-shore wind farms. The vessel, adapted from a design used by the Royal Norwegian Navy, was taken through from the concept stage to full scale production thanks to support from the OWA.
The Wave Craft is a surface effect ship (SES), using an air cushion to lift 80 percent of the vessel and ensuring that only a small part of the hull is in the water. This reduces wave induced motions and opens a larger operational window for maintenance teams to access wind farms.
The vessel can reach high speeds with a lower fuel consumption than a high speed catamaran. Its stability in the water reduces sea sickness and increases wind farm accessibility by at least 20 percent.
As of 1 March 2015, OWA partner DONG Energy has chartered the first Wave Craft vessel at the Borkum Riffgrund 1 offshore wind farm in the North Sea.
Image: Carbon Trust